Establishment of
Native Forbs in
Wildland Settings
Alison Whittaker, Danny Summers,
Covy Jones, Jason Vernon
Questions
 Can we get these species to grow in a
wildland setting?
 What kind of equipment should we be
using to plant seed from these species?
 Can we use these species in large scale
restoration projects?
Outline
 Comparison of wildland planting methods
using native forbs.
 Forb Island study using N-sulate fabric to
establish small forb stands.
What piece of equipment do
we use?
Study Design
 2 sites
 North Site
 South Site
 2 years – Treated in 2008 and 2009
 5 treatments
 Control
 Aerator
 Chain
 Drill
 Pipe Harrow
Site Layout
2008 Replication
2009 Replication
Plot size = 150’ x 100’
Planting Methods




Aerator
Pipe Harrow
Ely Chain
Truax Rangeland Drill
Seed Mix
Species
Munro Globemallow
Blue Flax
Utah Sweetvetch
Silvery Lupine
Palmer Penstemon
Utah Astragalus
Arrowleaf Balsamroot
Firecracker Penstemon
Tapertip Hawksbeard
Total
Rate (lbs/acre)
0.5
1
1
1.5
0.5
0.6
2
0.29
0.16
7.55
Seeds/sq.ft.
4.32
6.04
0.60
0.27
4.86
2.03
2.28
3.18
0.48
24.04
Data Collection
 100 quadrats per plot
 Cover – Modified
Daubenmire cover
class
 Density of perennial
species
Results
Treated in 2008
2009 Data
10%
Percent Germination
SPMU
PEPA8
8%
PEEA
LUAR
6%
LILE
HEBO
4%
CRAC
BASA
2%
ASUT
0%
Aerator Chain Control
North
Drill
Harrow Aerator Chain Control
South
Drill
Harrow
Treated in 2008
2010 Data
10%
Percent Germination
SPMU
PEPA8
8%
PEEA
LUAR
6%
LILE
HEBO
4%
CRAC
BASA
2%
ASUT
0%
Aerator Chain Control
North
Drill
Harrow Aerator Chain Control
South
Drill
Harrow
2009
2010
Sep
Aug
Jul
Jun
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
Dec
Nov
Oct.
Sep
Aug
Jul
Jun
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
Dec
Nov
Oct.
Percent of Normal
Precipitation from Dugway Weather Station
250%
200%
150%
100%
50%
0%
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec
Palmer Drought Severity Index
3
2
1
0
Normal
-1
Slight Drought
-2
Moderate
Drought
-3
Severe
Drought
-4
Extreme
Drought
-5
2009
2010
Treated in 2009
2010 Data
20%
SPMU
Percent Germination
PEPA8
15%
PEEA
LUAR
LILE
10%
HEBO
CRAC
BASA
5%
ASUT
0%
Aerator Chain Control
North
Drill
Harrow Aerator Chain Control
South
Drill
Harrow
Sagebrush Cover
15
Cover (%)
10
5
0
Aerator
Chain
Control
Treatm ent
Drill
Harrow
Control
Aerator
Harrow
Drill
Chain
Annual Species Cover
25
Aerator
Chain
20
Control
Drill
Cover (%)
Harrow
15
10
5
0
North
South
Which piece of equipment
should you use?
 Consider your objectives
 Do you want to remove sagebrush? If so how
much?
 Consider the site potential
 Is there cheatgrass or other weedy annuals
present?
 How rocky is the site?
 How much sagebrush is on the site?
 Pray for rain!
Forb Island Study
Why use N-sulate fabric?
50%
p=.0001
p<.0001
Percent Germ
40%
30%
p<.0001
p=.0004
20%
10%
0%
LUAR
LUSE
LUARB
LUPR
Fabric
29.7%
42.8%
23.2%
39.2%
Uncovered
3.2%
20.3%
9.8%
10.7%
Species
N-Sulate Fabric
 Row cover that is permeable to water
and air
 Allows light penetration
 Increases soil temperature
 Increases length of soil moisture
availability
 Hypothesis - Increase seed germination
and survival
Study Design
 4 sites




Fountain Green
Gordon Creek
Lookout Pass
Hatch Ranch
 2 N-Sulate treatments
 Covered
 Uncovered
 2 Seed Mixes
Seed Mixes
Rate
Seed Mix 1
Seeds/ft2
Rate
Seed Mix 2
Seeds/ft2
Linum lewisii
9
Agoseris grandiflora
24
Poa fendleriana
17
Agoseris heterophylla
18
Cleome serrulata
3
Nicotiana attenuata
26
Lupinus argenteus
21
Lomatium nudicaule
25
Sphaeralcea grossularifolia
20
Argemone munita
18
Balsamorhiza sagittata
16
Heliomeris multiflora
nevadensis
17
Hedysarum boreale
17
Thelypodium milleflorum
18
Penstemon pachyphyllus
17
Total
146
Total
122
Mix 1
25%
Uncovered
Covered
POFE
SPGR
Percent Germination
20%
15%
10%
5%
0%
BASA
CLSE
HEBO
LILE
LUAR
PEPA
Mix 2
14%
Uncovered
Covered
Percent Germination
12%
10%
8%
6%
4%
2%
0%
Agoseris sp.
ARMU
HEMU
LONU
NIAT
THMI
All Species
60
50
Density/sq.m
Uncovered
Covered
40
30
20
10
0
Fountain Green
Gordon Creek
Hatch Ranch
Site
Lookout Pass
Sagebrush Seedlings
60
Density/sq.m
50
40
30
20
10
0
Uncovered
Covered
Annual Weed Density by Site
Uncovered
600
Covered
Density/sq.m
500
400
300
200
100
0
FG
GC
HR
Site
LOP
Cheatgrass Cover by Site
Uncovered
60
Covered
50
Cover (%)
40
30
20
10
0
FG
GC
HR
Site
LOP
Cost vs Benefit
 Possibility of increase in cheatgrass and
other annual species.
 Price of N-Sulate fabric is approximately
$800/acre but it can be used 2 or 3 times.
 Increased germination of seeded species
particularly on drier sites.
 Increased germination of sagebrush.
Continued Research and
New Questions
 Continue to monitor equipment comparison study.
 Forb Island study was replicated fall of 2010 and data
will be collected this spring.
 Can we use plateau with N-Sulate fabric to help control
germination of cheatgrass and other annuals?
 Are there other mulches that can improve
establishment of native forbs that may be more cost
effective than N-Sulate fabric?
 Do we need to remove sagebrush or other competition
to establish native forbs?
Acknowledgements
Additional funding from the Pittman-Robertson Federal Aid Grant W-82-R